As the temperature outside drops, many families wonder how to safely dress their infants and children. especially when riding in the car. First of all, when dressing your child or infant consider how long your trip will be and then what you will be doing at your destination (i.e. will you be outside or inside). For short trips, unless your preheat your car your car would likely be cooler and your child may need more covering. For longer trips, the car will likely be toasty and lighter layers may be needed to prevent your child from overheating. In addition, bulky clothes can cause safety problems. Hoods can push an infant’s head forward. And, plush fluffy coats will compress in the force of the collision and put your child at risk of sliding out of the care seat! The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests in the winter these tips : 1) Store the carrier portion of infant seats inside the house to keep them warm; 2) Get an early start by not only allowing the car to preheat, but allow more time to drive safely to your destination; 3) Dress your child in layers starting with tights, leggings and long-sleeved body suits and then cover with a sweater or track suit and then layer a thin jacket over top; 4) Don’t’ forget hats, mittens, socks and booties. Though you may need to remove them on longer trips; 5) Use a coat or blanket over the straps for extra warm. You can put the coat on backwards over the straps or just cover the seat with a blanket to cut out the winter wind chill; and 5) Make sure to tighten your child’s harness straps. Remember if you can pinch the straps of the harness then it’s too loose! For more information please visit: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/safety-prevention/on-the-go/Pages/Winter-Car-Seat-Safety-Tips.aspx